Choral TBB choir, piano
SKU: CF.CM9777
Composed by Matthew
Emery. Duration 4
minutes, 8 seconds. Carl
Fischer Music #CM9777.
Published by Carl Fischer
Music (CF.CM9777).
ISBN 9781491164488.
UPC: 680160923380. Key:
Bb major. English.
Marjorie
Pickthall.
Text:
excerpt from
Brading by Marjorie
PickthallHere, where the
legions parted; Here,
where the shields were
laid, Wild orchid,
honey-hearted, Grows in
the wind-swept
shade.Here, where the
soldiers rested; Here,
where they set their
spears, The little larks,
brown-breasted, Fall down
like falling tears.Here,
where the swords came
after; Here, where the
ships went by,The
sea-winds send their
laughter Between the
downs and the sky.Program
note:Between the downs
and the sky is a
meditation on the text
and the notion of here.
Reflective and
commemorative in nature,
the poem speaks to themes
of remembrance and our
shared connections to
humanity translated
through the natural
world. Pickthall pairs
anthropomorphized images
of nature against the
impacts of human violence
and strife.I am drawn to
the location-less setting
of “hereâ€. We
are left with a certain
placeless-ness in the
poem. “Hereâ€
could mean anywhere and
everywhere; it could also
mean right in front of us
in this exact moment.
“Here†is
also a call to attention,
here where we witness,
where we notice, where we
are called to. Here,
where we love, where we
mourn, where we hope to
become whole.Musically,
“here†is
metamorphosed through
various ostinati gestures
as if to depict memory,
reflections, echoes which
reverberate long after
the initial source, a
heart beat, relentless
waves pounding shores,
etc. The work also
juxtaposes extreme high
and low registers
particularly in the piano
writing to capture the
title image of the
“here†found
in-between the downs and
the sky.The work moves in
and out of unison, two
part, and optional three
part writing; from m. 45
to the end, the middle
line baritone part is
completely optional. The
music functions the same
with or without the inner
voice part. This is done
to aid in the
accessibility of the
work, to make the music
as approachable and
successful to groups of
all abilities.
Matthew Sky
